


Man After My Own Heart

by C0bw3b2



Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: Depression, Fluff and Smut, How Do I Tag, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Past Abuse, Past Child Abuse, Slow Burn, Slow Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-16
Updated: 2020-11-16
Packaged: 2021-03-10 08:06:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,639
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27589963
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/C0bw3b2/pseuds/C0bw3b2
Summary: Shane has known Kasumi for 3 years now, becoming close friends with the new owner of Star Hollow Ridge and his husband Alex. Unfortunately Shane is still stuck in his rut, even if he feels a little bit more accepted than usual.It's when a new face shows up to help Kasumi out on the farm thet Shane finally decides to use his new-found confidence -- as little as it may be -- to willingly befriend this new characterBut..What happens when their problems are worse than his own? What does he do when he blocks Shane out like he's done to so many others? Will Shane's self deprecating conscious make him back down? Or will he pursue and break through that brick barrier?Tl:dr: Basically Shane takes on the role of the farmer, and seduces him instead of the other way around with the help of Kasumi.This is my first fic plz b gentle I havent written in liken 9 years.
Relationships: Alex/Male Player (Stardew Valley), Shane & Player (Stardew Valley), Shane/Male Player (Stardew Valley), Shane/Original Character(s), Shane/Player (Stardew Valley)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 9





	1. Year Two, Winter Twenty Eighth

The Saloon was quiet, but it always was on Monday nights. Really, it was only him, Pam and maybe some other inconsistent customers that needed the relaxed atmosphere of the bar, or even to drink a bad day away. Of course, it was only 4 pm and the it still had an opportunity to fill up, but that was doubtful for the dreaded beginning of the week, and if he was being honest with himself, it was probably just going to be him and Pam. Shane let out a quiet huff, resting his chin onto a folded arm, tilting his head to the side so that it fit snugly in the gap.With his free hand, he slowly swirled the half empty (or half full?) mug of cheap, slightly-better-than-joja beer and watching how the amber liquid spun, small, pearlescent bubbles quickly forming, moving towards the top to form more foam. In a way, he felt guilty for being in the Saloon this early with the other town drunk, someone who was nearly twice his age also drinking away her problems that she probably didn't even remember at this point. Shane took a half swig of the now flat, foamy poison, making a face as the bitterness hit his tastebuds, almost tasting like acid, before it burned its way down his throat. 

He was in the middle of calling Gus over for a refill, since he was now down to quarter of a glass, and the last bit always tastes the worse, when the door opened. Before Shane could even process the presence of another person, let alone two, they were up on the stools on either side him, and with an audible groan he finally processed what was going on.

Thankfully, he wasn't necessarily bothered by these two.

There was a slap to his right shoulder, not so hard that it was aggressive, but painful enough to let him know that this was a "bro" move, as Alex called it.  
"Hey man!" He laughed, which grew louder when Shane greeted him with a grunt that held much less excitement than Alex's greeting. Alex had grown a lot within these past two years, previously being quite the jack ass. Shane remembered how full of himself, throwing his stupid gridball around, stating how he was going pro and how nothing would get in his way. He would talk about how he wished there were more girls in the town, despite tailing after Haley like a lost puppy who was just let off its chain. God how he hated the juice head prick, acting like nothing was worth his time besides his thoughts, Haley, and the damned dog.

Then Kasumi moved in, and suddenly that tough, classic jock exterior melted like a stick of butter on a hot summer day. Somehow he broke through, and after they married in the fall of Kasumi's second year, Alex was a totally different man. The farm, the family life, made Alex actually enjoyable to be around.

Speaking of, Kasumi Mullner (previously Okada), was his own phenomenon, moving into Star Hollow Ridge five years after his grandfather passed. It was a total mess when he moved in, over run with weeds and debris and trees and the little cabin wasn't any nicer, falling apart at the seams and only able to hold one person. Within two years, though, it was practically cleaned up, the house now big enough to hold an entire family and crops growing in a very checkerboard like pattern. He had two coops and two barns built, and even a stable beside his house with a real pretty Seal Bay Morgan he named Daisuke. Shane could bet money that the horse was hitched outside the Saloon, chowing down on some of the grass. 

Kasumi was a kinda gentle spirit, with a love for all things with a soul, and his face reflected that. He had a "Salt-Face" as he called it, with soft features and a jaw that was moderately defined. He had large, almond eyes that were colored a pale pink. His hair, almost as white as winter's first snow, was parted to the left, cut right at medium length, the strands reaching to the tail of his brow. He had a light dusting of freckles along his bridge and nose from the days of working in the hot sun, adding some color to his nearly paper white skin. Shane vaguely remembered Kasumi saying how he was thankful for the Wizard gifting him a ring of sapphire to help prevent burns. He didn't understand why Kasumi wanted to be his friend, hell, still didn't fully get it, but like with Alex, Kasumi shimmied his way in to his friend circle.

Now, the usually relaxed farmer was basically vibrating in the stool he was in, pale eyes wide with excitement, particularly styled hair falling into his eyes. Shane couldn't help but feel a small bit concerned.  
"You alright there, Kas?" Shane started, raising a curious brow. "You have too much coffee? Alex accidentally give you one of his protein shakes?" That comment resulted in a playful punch to the arm, before Alex spoke up.  
"Hey! I make sure he doesn't get into my shakes! He's just has the jitters because a friend and old co-worker of his is moving into the farm with us." Alex explained, and Shane let out a frustrated groan. Knowing how Kasumi was, this new person would be introduced to Shane, and the entire town, near immediately, which the thought of it flared up his social anxiety and quickly those haunting thoughts came creeping into his head, whispering their spells into his conscious. Kasumi just lucky and Alex was a friend by default, there was no way he was letting anyone else in.

"Indeed! His name is Duke and he's moving in tomorrow and I think.." He grinned mischievously, nudging Shane's arm with his elbow. "You two will make great friends!"

"Don't..get your hopes up.." Shane mumbled, suddenly feeling very overwhelmed with the idea of another new face. He downed the remainder of the alcohol in his mug, gagging a bit at how it tasted like his closest guess to warm piss before getting up abruptly, paying his tab off and wandering out the door with a parting "See you two later." He heard Kasumi and Alex collectively shout a "bye Shane!" Before the door shut behind him, neither hurt by the abrupt exit. That's what was nice about Kasumi, he never pushed his limits and understood that now that Shane thought of him as a friend, nothing was necessarily hostile. Shane was just..Abrupt sometimes.

He decided he'd get his alone time while he could, meandering his way home, hands stuffed into the pockets of his worn sweater. It took him ten minutes to get to the front door of his aunt's, and for a split, self deprecating moment he wished he had somewhere else to go, like Alex did. Alex got to go home to Kasumi evey night, was apart of the farm, apart of the work. Now, it wasn't like Shane wanted to be with Kasumi, but he just..Wanted someone he could go home to, someone to crawl into bed with.

He snorted, walking into the house and closing the door quietly behind him before moving onto his room. It was only 4:50 in the afternoon, so he dragged a half empty six pack of beer from under his bed, sitting infront of his console and beginning his game, letting his mind blank out totally before he went to bed.

Tomorrow was going to be a long day.


	2. Year Three, Spring Thirteenth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You can't avoid fate forever, nor can you avoid your two best and only friends as Shane finds out.

Shane would be lying if he said that he wasn't actively avoiding Kasumi the days leading up to the Egg Festival, even changing up his schedule so that the farmer couldn't find him. The only thing he couldn't change, though, was his job schedule. Thankfully, Kasumi was always busy between six to noon tending to animals and crops, and never dared set foot in the Joja store due to it hitting a bit to close to home. After work, Shane would bee line it home, taking the path to the south of the town to avoid any accidental run-ins, but he knew his little escapade couldn't last forever.

It was the day of the Egg Festival, Shane had been up since the ass crack of dawn, three in the damn morning to be exact, just so he could help Jas paint atleast two and a half dozen eggs that Marnie had boiled the night before. She herself was out delivering another couple cartons of unboiled eggs (Shane triple checked the night before that they were unfertilized..Gus now had a new pet chicken) to Gus, and thanks to Star Hollow's chickens, her's weren't as depended on and they only needed half the amount of eggs actually needed for the festival, meaning they didn't have to stockpile thirty plus eggs from their poor birds. Though, Shane had to admit it was still stressful, especially since he had to sneak around and avoid Star Hollow totally. Sorry Marnie.

He yawned loudly as he finished a sloppy yellow band on a pink egg, picking up a thin brush to press small blue dots onto the vibrant color. They were uneven, some coming out more saturated then others, and one pesky blob dribbled down the side of the egg, leaving a light stain of the smear when he wiped it away with a paper towel, grumbling at the inconvenience and how his "perfect" egg was now ruined. Jane giggled at the pouting man, lightly swatting at him. "It's just an egg, silly!!" She said very matter-of-factly, like she didn't get seriously upset over her "unicorn egg" she added blue to instead of pink. Shane relented anyways, deciding to sate her with a dramatic sigh and a simple "you're right, Jas" before he set it aside to dry, plucking another egg, now red, from it's designated dye cup. Painting eggs wasn't a horrid process, but he definitely wished he could have slept through it, since he was much to old for this, and normally he would sleep right through until the festival itself.. But he had promised Jas and himself this year that he would get up to help with the decorating. It, surprisingly, was moderately satisfying to color the damned things, and despite his exhaustion he was actually enjoying this bonding time with his god daughter.

It took 3 (too many in Shane's opinion) hours to color all the eggs and get them all sorted in their cartons. Jas wanted them organized by colors and Shane did exactly that before passing the stacked cartons to her. With much excitement, she carried the two boxes to the festival, Shane hovering over to ensure that their hard work wasn't accidentally dropped and the egg hunt turned into cleaning up egg guts so they didn't rot and stink up the whole town during the summer. She was dropped off to play with Vincent inside Jodi's house before Shane took over the delivery, handing off the eggs to Willy, dusting his hands off. His fingertips were stained all sorts of different colors, merging together to form a faint inky black on his finger tips, but blues and reds and yellows were scattered else where in seperate little splotches. He scoffed slightly, deciding to just help finish up the decorations and set the table for the final few hours, knowing that if he went home he would just...Sleep right through the entire festival, and while this wasn't one of the big ones, it was still nice to attend. 

For some reason, probably because he had been so busy and was up before his brain was even functioning properly, Shane had forgotten ther Kasumi and Alex attended all festivals. It was when 10:30 hit that a loud boisterous laughter rang through the entrance of the festival, and Shane suddenly decided that he regretted not going home and sleeping through the festival, because what's one egg hunt going to hurt? He knew immediately that the Mullner's arrived and he turned to see Alex, blood turning into shards of ice that shot through his veins, a lump forming into his throat immediately when he saw the usual duo's third musketeer.

Now Duke..That was his name, right..? Wasn't stunning, and this wasn't a situation where the lump was Shane's heart because he saw a god of a man..No, he was..Average, standing shorter than even Shane at around a meager 5'3, with tanned skin and striking, steel grey eyes that glanced around the area like a nervous calf, his hair styled in a way that made him think of Sebastian's and Sam's hair combined, mainly a messy, spiky mop of hair with a two strands coming down to his right eye to partially cover it. It was a soft lilac color, and while Shane couldn't tell if it was natural, he had a good guess that it was, seeing as his own was a dark purple. He caught his frantic glancing, and for a moment both stood still, and Shane cursed under his breath. Of course he was caught staring and now looked like a total creep! The hell was wrong with him. He tensed up when Kasumi waved, leaning over to say something to Duke that he was much took far to hear, but he guessed it was the farmer excusing Shane's rudeness.

"Oh! Shane! Hey!" Alex was the first to make his way to Shane,putting a hand on his shoulder and guiding the now panicking man to Kasumi and the mysterious second farmer. "Where haveya been, man? We wanted to introduce you to Duke! He's super cool. Duke, this is Shane, he's kind of an ass but you'll get used to it!" Said man shoved Alex away with a grumble, running his fingers through his hair nervously before offering it to Duke, looking to the side sheepishly. "Eh...Yeah, I'm Shane..Nice to meet you I guess?" He wanted to vomit, creeping voices of taunts filled with poison, telling him how this was just another person to disappoint, another person who will eventually realize how disgusting of a person he was and leave him like everyone else..Like Alex and Kasumi eventually would.

Duke flinched slightly at the hand, before realizing why it was there and slowly accepting the hand shake, his grip firm despite his timid demeanor. With one firm shake, he finally spoke. " 'M Duke...I uh...I've heard a bit about you, nice to finally put a face to it." He said, voice shockingly clear before huffing a breathy laugh. Both quickly withdrew their hands and shoved them into respective pockets, standing awkwardly, neither quite sure what to do and obviously being horrible at social interactions. The air was tense, and before Kasumi could open his mouth Shane left without a word, quickly moving his way to the buffet. Not to long after he made his plate, the egg hunt was called.

Shockingly, Duke had won first place, with Abigail running second and Kasumi third, but what stunned Shane more was when Duke walked over to Jas and Vincent, both pouting by a near tree, crouching down to give each 50 gold. It was enough to buy them a small toy or even candy, but the gesture itself was immensely sweet. They both scurried off excitedly, carefully protecting their very valuable, very special money. It was there Shane decided he would willingly accept this soul in, wouldn't push away and fight and bark like he's done to so many others. If they were kind enough to do that then..Hell, it was worth a shot.

He wasn't aware that it would be him pushing himself into Duke's world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For heights, Alex is around 6'0, Shane is 5'6 and Kasumi is also 5'6-5'7.  
> Did I mention that Dukenwill have his own heart events?

**Author's Note:**

> Again, I haven't written in years so hopefully I'll improve with this fic. I'll probably edit it a lot too, since I'm always coming up with new ideas ugh lmao.  
> The idea just comes from my two games, with Kasumi being my main file and Duke being my new file. Star Hollow Ridge is the four corners farm, and Duke lives in a cabin hut on the bottom right corner.


End file.
